Lonestar Gourd Rack System

[Guest]

I am considering a purchase of the Lonestar Gourd Rack System from PMCA.....any feedback from the forum on those who have the system is appreciated.
Thanks,
Cliff

[John Barrow]

Hi Cliff. I own 5 of the LS gourd rack systems and they pretty well fill up every season. Like all LoneStar products they are at least as good or better than the rest of the gourd systems. They are user friendly and well made. I have 3 mentees on nearby ranches and property adding lone star gourd racks and troyer cresent horizonatl gourds this season.

The pole and winch is excellent and the rack itsself is spacy and lends itsself to offering many types of hanging options. It is easy to modify if necessary and many adjustments can be made without a lot of cost. If you end up with one, please feel free to email me for some ideas on how to present the rack and bring in the martins.

I recently had published an article in PMCA Update 14-2 (accessible online at PMCA website) on transforming gourds into birdhouses and all of the photos in that story were taken on my lone star gourd rack systems.

Best of luck . john

[Kenneth Hicks]

John,

Can the Troyer horizontal gourds be attached to the Lonestar Gourd Rack System?

Kenneth

[Steve Kroenke]

Hey Cliff,

I have used the Lone Star gourd rack systems for a number of years. I had three of them at my former colony site in Tallahassee, Florida and will have three at my present colony in northwest Louisiana. So I have purchased six Lone Star systems from the PMCA over the years.

One of the big advantages of the Lone Star systems is their crossbar design. This design allows for greater spacing gourds and you can use a variety of shapes such as those that maximize vertical/horizontal depth. This spacing minimizes nest domination by possessive males. I have posted a number of pictures on the Forum of my Lone Star racks and gourds.

I have not used their cable system that is provided with the rack. I prefer to use No. 10 plastic coated copper wire to circle the ends of each tier rack. This wire is stronger and more stable than the cable Lone Star provides. However, I am sure other folks have used the Lone Star cable with great success.

This season I will be hanging gourds on two of my Lone Star racks directly from the crossbars and not on any kind of cable/wire that circles around the ends of the racks.

On my Lone Star racks I have hung traditional gourds, woodpecker vertically deep gourds, funnels, and horizontals. You could hang Troyer horizontals with some modifications. I prefer to use natural gourds on the Lone Star rack because of their lighter weight; the SuperGourds are much heavier (around 32 ounces without nesting material or martins) than a comparable natural. I have tried 16 SuperGourds on a Lone Star rack and their combined weight concerned me. I noticed that my Lone Star racks swayed more with the heavier SuperGourds than naturals. Plus when cranking up 16 SuperGourds with the Lone Star winch, it seemed to "strain" the winch. But that just may be my perception! The Lone Star winch seems to me to work better with a lighter load of naturals.

I have attached a picture of one of my Lone Star racks that has many of the natural gourds that maximize vertical/horizontal depth. In the background you will see a Lone Star Goliad so I LIKE the Lone Star stuff! You will see on this rack various horizontal type gourds suspended from the cable as well as from the ends of crossbars. So, I believe a Troyer horizontal could be used.

So the Lone Star gourd rack system is excellent and equal to or better than comparably priced commercial system currently on the market.

Good luck.

Steve

[Kenneth Hicks]

Steve,

Would you recommend attaching Troyer gourds via modifications to the Lonestar rack, or obtain the deluxe gourd rack that allows for horizontal placement in its design?

[abernathys]

Hey All-

I wanted to purchase some troyer gourds and was wondering what type of porch would work. Are the metal clip on porches the only type of porch that will work for these gourds?

Thanks
Sandy

[Louise Chambers]

Ken,

you can hang Troyer Horizontals on the Lone Star rack. One of the differences between LS rack and PMCA gourd racks is that with PMCA racks, gourds slide onto hanging arms and secure with pin, no wires needed. With LS racks, wires are used to attach gourds to wire and or to corner arms. Both types of racks are very good.

Louise

[John Barrow]

Ken, no modifications to the Lonestar rack are needed to hang troyer HGs. A single/simple modification is needed with the gourds. You simply drill a 1/8 inch hole into the front top of the gourd-there is a small dimple already in place where the hole is drilled. Cut a piece of 10 gauge single strand insulated copper wire about a foot long. Using two pairs of pliers tie a knot in one end--it will be loose but will not easily come apart. From the inside of the gourd push the open end of the wire through the hole that you cut in the gourd. That is your front hanging wire and is readily attached through the eye bolts on each hanging arm of the LS rack. All the gourd to hang about 2-3 inches below the rack. Cut a second piece of wire about 20 inches long and pass it through the larger holes already cut in the top of the Troyers (where the metal arm that Louise refers to on the PMCA gourd rack-an excellent product BTW- would pass through). Each end of the second wire is then wrapped around the gourd rack arm to stabilize the back of the gourd. I also snug an electrical tie around one of these back wires to prevent movement. As you will see these back wires can be used to adjust the angle the gourd hangs at. The troyer should be level, but the same concept is used to hang horizontal natural gourds anywhere from level to near vertical.

One hint--when hanging the troyer HG, twist two of the wires (front and very back) away from you and twist the middle wire toward you (or vice versa) to further stabilize the gourd and minimize sideward movement.

Good luck with your choices and martin season. jb

[Kenneth Hicks]

Thanks each one for the info.

Cliff,
I did not mean to hijack your topic but I hope the info provided helps you also.

Kenneth

[Guest]

Wow, good stuff from the experts, I appreciate you taking the time to discuss and share, all to benefit our purple friends. Thanks, I will post a final picture once I decide on the variety of gourds for the rack. Good luck in 2006 as it is fast approaching.